• About
  • Join/Donate
  • Contact
Monday, January 30, 2023
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
The Brief
NB MEDIA CO-OP
Share a story
  • Articles en français
  • New Brunswick
  • Canada
  • World
  • Environment
  • Indigenous
  • Labour
  • Gender
  • Politics
  • Culture
  • Videos
  • NB debrief
  • Articles en français
  • New Brunswick
  • Canada
  • World
  • Environment
  • Indigenous
  • Labour
  • Gender
  • Politics
  • Culture
  • Videos
  • NB debrief
No Result
View All Result
NB MEDIA CO-OP
No Result
View All Result
Home *Opinion*

Lowest-paid workers in Shannex homes in New Brunswick excluded from federal wage top-up

by Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)
July 31, 2020
Reading Time: 2min read
Lowest-paid workers in Shannex homes in New Brunswick excluded from federal wage top-up

Shannex Parkland - Lily Court in Saint John is one of the homes in NB where the lowest-paid workers are being excluded from a federal wage top-up. Photo from Shannex website.

The union representing workers at retirement homes across New Brunswick is calling out the provincial government and Shannex, the owner of several homes, for excluding some of the lowest-paid workers in retirement homes – mostly women – from accessing the federal fund for COVID-19 wage top-ups.

CUPE 5446 has learned that the Parkland homes in Fredericton (Brunswick Hall) and Saint John (Lily Court) have both been approved for the federal fund for wage top-ups, but is beyond disappointed to learn that only those working in direct care will receive it. This means that special care home employees who work in food service, cleaning and recreation are being excluded, even though they have provided vital support to keep homes safe and residents healthy throughout the pandemic.

“It’s insulting and unjust for so many people who have done so much through this challenging time to be excluded from this modest recognition of their hard work,” said Hope Cyr, President of CUPE 5446.

Currently, only “direct care” employees will receive the wage top-up, which amounts to $500 for every 120 hours worked. Due to the way Shannex organizes their workplace, employees will only receive the top-up for hours worked in “direct care”, and not in any support role like cleaning or serving food, despite the fact that many employees regularly perform many direct and indirect duties over the course of a shift.

Cyr noted the exclusion of so many workers also becomes a pay equity issue when the overwhelming majority are women, who already earn less than men on average. “We’re calling on the government and Shannex to go back to the drawing board right away to fix this.”

For its part, the New Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equity is advocating for pay equity—equal pay for work of equal value—for workers across all female-dominated professions and, as such, in the caregiving sector as a whole.

“This crisis sheds light on the importance of these workers’ contribution to society—and their vulnerability. Because we have systematically undervalued their work for years, that importance is not reflected in their wages. The services provided by workers across the sector merit recognition as well as the wage top-up,” explained Frances LeBlanc, the Coalition Chair. “Yet, we need a permanent solution to ensure equal pay for work of equal value: pay equity legislation in the whole private sector.”

CUPE (the Canadian Union of Public Employees) is the largest public sector union in Canada, representing more than 700,000 members, including more than 26,000 in New Brunswick.

Tags: Canadian Union of Public EmployeesCUPENew Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equitynursing homesShannex
ShareTweetSend

Related Posts

Bargaining Forward: Book co-published by CUPE, NB Media Co-op documents historic 2021 strike [video]
Books

Bargaining Forward: Book co-published by CUPE, NB Media Co-op documents historic 2021 strike [video]

January 27, 2023

A new book co-published by the NB Media Co-op and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) vividly documents the...

New Brunswick must fix staffing shortages in nursing homes, says union leader [video]
Labour

New Brunswick must fix staffing shortages in nursing homes, says union leader [video]

November 18, 2022

The New Brunswick government announced this week that it is inviting operators of all 71 nursing homes in the province...

Flashback: CUPE rallies at the New Brunswick Legislature, Nov. 2, 2021
Labour

Flashback: CUPE rallies at the New Brunswick Legislature, Nov. 2, 2021

November 2, 2022

Editor's note: The NB Media Co-op has collaborated with the Canadian Union of Public Employees to publish a forthcoming book...

Several people holding placards listen while the union president addresses a member of parliament.
Health

Health care workers rally outside Liberal MP retreat [video]

September 22, 2022

Advocates rallied in support of public health care earlier this month in St. Andrews, as Prime Minister Trudeau and the...

Load More

Recommended

Small modular nuclear reactors are unsafe: CRED-NB [video] 

Small modular nuclear reactors are unsafe: CRED-NB [video] 

4 days ago
A Train in the Night that shoulda never been there: Seeking justice for Lac-Mégantic

A Train in the Night that shoulda never been there: Seeking justice for Lac-Mégantic

3 days ago
COMMENTARY: Mining executives get millions in compensation, public left holding the bag

COMMENTARY: Mining executives get millions in compensation, public left holding the bag

6 hours ago
Bargaining Forward: Book co-published by CUPE, NB Media Co-op documents historic 2021 strike [video]

Bargaining Forward: Book co-published by CUPE, NB Media Co-op documents historic 2021 strike [video]

3 days ago
NB Media Co-op

© 2019 NB Media Co-op. All rights reserved.

Navigate Site

  • About
  • Join/Donate
  • Contact
  • Share a Story
  • Calendar
  • Archives

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • Join/Donate
  • Contact
  • Share a Story
  • COVID-19
  • Videos
  • New Brunswick
  • Canada
  • World
  • Arts & Culture
  • Environment
  • Indigenous
  • Labour
  • Politics
  • Rural

© 2019 NB Media Co-op. All rights reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In